Review: The Woofy Doggy by Antony Pawlett

The Woofy Doggy is a cute tale to share with the young ones at home. Woofy Doggy has a hard time being nice to others. He barks at people and pets and no one wants to be friends with him. Until one day, a smart girl gives him an advise that will change the way he relates to others.
I think little ones will enjoy the lesson they'll learn from the little pup. Parents will also find, maybe, a conversation starter in this book, about having a good attitude toward friends. But, lessons apart, I really liked the author's writing style: simple, clean, pleasant. The story itself was good, engaging and sweet.
If I have to point at something though, would be the illustrations. I liked the concept of the book, clean, digital looking, but I still think that some illustrations needed more work. This, though, doesn't take away from the story. The Woofy Doggy is a book I recommend to anyone who wants to hear a good story.

Mariana Llanos

I received a PDF copy in exchange for  a honest review.
Available on Kindle and paperback.

Twinkle, the Real Story of the Tooth Fairy by John Moher

Twinkle the fairy didn’t have a lot of friends. Twinkle the fairy didn’t think much of himself. Twinkle the fairy was often teased because of his two big front teeth and his strange habit to collect other fairies’ baby teeth. But one day, Twinkle found his opportunity to blossom and find his gift. Twinkle found out that he was a Tooth Fairy!

Twinkle, the Real Story of the Tooth Fairy, is a cute little tale that will not disappoint. John Moher's storytelling style feels fresh and simple. His book offers us a  new version of what the tooth fairy does with all the teeth he collects while we learn a lesson of self-belief and confidence. My seven year old enjoyed reading it by himself and he also liked the fun and lively illustrations by Richard Svensson. I loved reading it, as well, and I recommended it to parents and their children alike.
Mariana Llanos

 

Little Treasure by Jiana J. Z.

Little Treasure is a sweet and lovely short tale about a generous king, Leon, who has every treasure in the world but lacks something essential: happiness. One day, while he’s taking a stroll through his forest, he hears laughter coming from a little shabby shack. He wonders how someone could sound so happy living in such a poor house. He wonders why he can’t be as happy, even though he has everything there is to have. Will King Leon find the source of joy? You will have to read it to find out, but I’m sure the answer will please both parents and children alike.

I like the author’s simple and uncomplicated story telling; it just makes it easy for beginner readers to read by themselves or perfect for those kids who still enjoy being read to. And don’t get me wrong, the prose might seem simple but the message is deep: it doesn’t matter how many material things we have, because the joy they bring will be short-lived. Little Treasure will remind us of what is really important in life.

The illustrations are beautifully done; they complement the story in a way that makes it feel like a fairy tale. Jiana J.Z., who authored and illustrated this book, is a talented artist, and I can’t wait to see more of her work!

Mariana Llanos

Review: Just Say Hi! by Margaret Bucklew

“Just Say HI!” is the story of two mushroom friends that come up to the surface and discover a whole new world. But making new friends in that new world is not an easy task, since the mushrooms feel different and shy. Little by little they learn that saying “hi” can open the door to new adventures.

It is told in dialogue and rhyme in a tone that at moments feels like a lesson about making friends, reminding me of Veggie Tales (without the reference to religion), and I guess that’s good if that’s what you are looking for. Maybe your child is in a situation when he or she will be facing a new environment and needs to be reassured that she’ll be alright. This book could be a guide or a conversation starter.

I think the illustrations will appeal to children. They are cute and simple, and show a new character in every page. My young daughter had fun pointing at them and looking at what was coming next.

Overall, “Just Say Hi!” is a book I can recommend for young readers to be read to, or early readers to read on their own (perhaps with some assistance), but most importantly it is a book that could help a child overcome the loneliness and shyness of trying to make new friends… and that’s priceless.

Mariana Llanos

 

Author Margaret Bucklew is the author of eight children's books

listed on Amazon.com. She has received several award in her teaching career.

*I received a free PDF copy of the book in exchange for my honest opinion.

At the Candy Shop with Author Aviva Gittle

On this edition of Candy Shop we have a special promotion (Only today 9-5-2013)!! FREE EBOOKS! Make sure to check out the links at the end of the interview!

Tristan Wolf, our imaginative hero is eight years old when his adventure begins. He is as dreamy and clever as only a child can be. We were all Tristan once in our life and maybe now, we have one in it. My guests- smart, creative and inspiring personalities- have accepted the challenge to go back to those years, to go back to when they were around eight or ten to answer some questions about the world around them.

Let me introduce you to author Aviva Gittle, when she was ten. 
 

Mariana: Hi, Aviva, it’s very nice meeting you. Where do you live? And who do you live with?

Aviva: 6 Cliftwood Place, Kings Park, NY. My mom, my stepdad Bob, my sister, our collie dogs, Kimmy and Laddie and our Siamese cat, Muffin. Kimmy and Muffin are smart. Laddie’s pretty dumb. But he’s really cute. He eats melon. What kind of dog eats melon?

Mariana: What’s your sister’s name? Do you two get along?

Aviva: My sister, Barbara, is 4 years older.  I hate her. She’s bigger and taller and mean. Every April Fool’s Day she leaves me notes that say I’m going to win a big prize. I go all over the house reading these stupid notes and the last one always says, “April Fools!” No prize. Nothing. I fall for it every year. Why do I trust her? I’m Charlie Brown; she’s Lucy.

Mariana: What school do you go to? What do you like about it?

Aviva: Parkview Elementary School. I like playing on the monkey bars. I like gym class. Well, I did like gym class. Every year I climb the ropes to the top and touch the ceiling. When you do that you get to be in the Monkey Club. This year I fell. Two stories down onto hard wrestling mats. Hurt my back bad. I don’t get to play in gym anymore. I have a cast that starts at my chest and goes down past my hips.

Mariana: And the worst about school?

Aviva: Most of the other kids. In Kindergarten and first grade, I wet my pants a few times. The first time was on the playground. I’m in 5^th grade now, but I still remember the kids making fun of me. I was sick, but the doctors told Mom there was nothing wrong with me. Dr. Waterhouse yelled at the other doctors ‘cause all they had to do was a simple test. I had a really bad infection.

Jenn and Bev are my best friends, but they’re not in my homeroom, so I have no friends. I’m an easy target. My parents are divorced, my hair’s frizzy, I’m not pretty and everyone makes me nervous. I told Mom the kids were all making fun of me, but she just told me to ignore them. It’s not working.

Mariana: Tell me more about your best friends!

Aviva: Jenn and Bev are both my best friends. Jenn can draw really well and Bev…is just Bev. She’s smart and she puts up with me. I’m different with them. A leader. I’m always coming up with creative projects. Like the time we made these little dolls out of yarn and sold them door-to-door. We record radio shows on my little cassette recorder. I write the scripts and they act them out with me.

Mariana: What is the food that you absolutely dislike eating?

Aviva: I didn’t know tongue really came from a cow’s tongue! I thought they just called it that. It used to taste great until I knew that. And I thought those were grapes on Grandma Pearl’s table. They were olives! Ew; so bitter. I’ll never eat an olive again for as long as I live.

Mariana: Do you have pets?

Aviva: Kimmy and Laddie, like I said. They’re a bit smelly, but I let them lick my face. Muffin, my cat, sleeps with me. He takes up half the bed!

Mariana: Are you scared of the dark?

Aviva: Very scared. When I walk home in the dark from my friend Bev’s house, I sing John Denver songs to keep me calm. Rocky Mountain High…

Mariana: Do you daydream?

Aviva: I daydream so deeply I forget where I am. Sometimes I’m walking home and day dreaming and I realize I’m talking out loud. When I was younger, the school called my parents because all I did was daydream in class. The counselor at the school told them to tell me that Santa Claus wasn’t real. They had my sister tell me. Bet she loved doing that. She’s so mean.

Mariana: Who do you look like, your mom or dad?

Aviva: Wherever we go people always say to my mom, “That one definitely belongs to you.” I think it makes my sister mad. Good.

Mariana: Who is your favorite star?

Aviva: Barbra Streisand. I sing her songs all the time. People, people who need people, are the luckiest…

Mariana: What is the best book you’ve ever read?

Aviva: The Phantom Tollbooth. Once I read that book my mom didn’t have to pay me to read anymore. She used to give me 35 cents a book!

Mariana: Do you think you’ll ever get married or have kids?

Aviva: Of course. Isn’t that what everybody does? I’ll have a house, and a white picket fence, and some kind of a job. It will all be really good.

Mariana: What do you want to be when you grow up?

Aviva: A veterinarian. I love animals.

Mariana: Thanks for sharing with me Aviva. I hope we can be friends for a long time!

And this is Aviva Gittle now:

I live in San Diego, CA with my partner of 16 years,

David. I’m still in touch with both of my best friends, Bev and Jen. I’m a grandma. Which, honestly, beats the heck out of being a parent. I’m older, wiser, calmer and I have more time to give.
In January of this year, I decided to self-publish two children’s stories I had written many years ago. I’ve had an entrepreneurial spirit since childhood, so I decided to be a publisher, too. In a fit of inspiration, I wrote a whole series (7 books) called “Kitten and Friends.” Kitten, who is irresistibly fluffy and cute, makes a new friend in each book. A butterfly, a snake, a koi, a squirrel, a monkey, a litter of kittens and a boy. I’ve written (or co-written) 6 other books. All will be offered in English, Spanish and “Spanish Immersion” (bilingual) versions. By mid-2014 I will have 42 eBooks in the Amazon Kindle library. Several more are actively in development. I’m also starting an animation project called “Blue Guy and Fly” with a young, talented Columbian artist. You can find a list of my published books here: amazon.com/author/avivagittle. Or just search Amazon.com for “Aviva Gittle.” There’s not too many of us. J
Aviva Gittle's free Ebooks, ONLY 9/5/2013...Please leave a review if you enjoyed her stories:

The boy who bounced the moon

 

 

In nana arms

 

 

When I was eight I used to daydream, I played pretend and I loved to write. I still remember my eighth birthday present and the feeling of joy it gave me. What was it? A journal, covered in beige leather, with a writing pad of white satin pages and a black fountain pen that attached to the inside of my elegant and beaming new friend. Oh, yes! A world of words and stories was waiting for me...

 

Review The Adventures of Blue Books 1 & 2 by Ronnie James

The Adventures of Blue, books 1 & 2 are a new series recommended for children 3 to 8 years old. The stories are very simple, engaging and cute. Blue is such a good dog that he is left free to wander around the countryside where he lives. He gets a new collar that turns out to be magical, and with it he goes on new adventures. On the first book he goes under water and on the second one, he floats over the river and goes to a farm.

The stories are simple enough for new readers to read on their own or younger readers to be read to, without losing attention. The illustrations are nice but I really wished it had more of them. That, in my opinion, would make this book even more child-friendly.  

Although a bit more editing is necessary (yes, that’s the author-me speaking), I recommend Blue, the very happy dog to your youngsters. I’m sure his happy spirit will steal their heart!

Mariana Llanos

Author Ronnie James lives in England with his dog Blue, who has inspired his books. He wrote his first children's story in 2007. He has a passion for dogs and to put smiles on people's faces.

This blog is part of the Amazon Affiliate Program.
A free PDF version of this book was provided to me in exchange for my honest opinion.

At the Candy Shop with Paul Day

Tristan Wolf, our imaginative hero is eight years old when his adventure begins. He is as dreamy and clever as only a child can be. We were all Tristan once in our life and maybe now, we have one in it. My guests- smart, creative and inspiring personalities- have accepted the challenge to go back to those years, to go back to when they were around eight or ten to answer some questions about the world around them.  

Let me introduce you to Australian author Paul Day, when he was eight.

Mariana: Hi, Paul, it’s very nice meeting you. Where do you live? And who do you live with?

Paul: Hi Marian, I mean Mariana. Is that right? I have an Aunt Marian so it’s a bit confusing. It’s nice to meet you too. I live in a big house with my family in Bendigo on McColl Street, just down the road from the mines. It’s not a very big house and I have to share my bedroom with my six brothers. I even have to share my bed cause there isn’t enough room. We only have a black and white TV too and we have to share that also. My Mum and Dad and my two sisters have their own room cause they are girls. Not my Dad though, he’s a man.

M: How do you get along with your siblings? What do you fight about?

P: I don’t get on very well with my brothers, except for Aaron. He’s

 the youngest and we do everything together. My other brothers pick on me a little bit cause I’m small. Plus, they call me dummy and stupid and I don’t like that so I get upset, a little bit. My oldest brother is ok, but he is always busy. We fight a lot, me and my brothers, mostly about nothing. Once, my brother went to hit me and I dodged and he missed and broke his thumb when his hand whacked into the window. He cried like a baby but I got in trouble cause he dobbed and Dad thought it was my fault. But it wasn’t.

M: What school do you go to? What do you like to do at school the most?

P: I got to Leura Public School in the Blue Mountains in NSW Australia. I’m in the third grade and my favorite teacher is Miss Simons. She’s the Music and Art teacher and she is really pretty and nice too. She doesn’t like it when the other kids pick on me and I spend recess and lunch in the Art room drawing and playing the trombone. I like camping and hiking and sometimes we get to do that at school. I also like music and art cause Miss Simons takes it and she is very pretty.

M: And the worst about school?

P: I don’t like some of the big kids. They steal my lunch and pick fights and that. I also don’t like Math because I’m no good at it.

M: What’s your best friend’s name?

P: My best friend is Daryl. He’s a bit silly and gets into trouble, but not because he’s naughty. He gets stuck in things and is always late for class. Once he got stuck in the drain chasing a stray cat and the teachers couldn’t get him out so they had to call the ambilians. When they got him out he giggled and said that they tickled him. It was so funny. But his mummy wasn’t laughing. She was crying. She yelled at him for getting stuck again. He’s my best friend cause he’s the only one that doesn’t call me shorty.

M: What is the food that you absolutely dislike eating? How does it taste like?

P: I hate brussel sprouts and broad beans. They are yucky. Mummy makes me eat them. I chew them then I ask to leave the table to go to the toilet and when I’m in there I spit them out and flush them down the dunny. Mum doesn’t know though so please don’t tell her.

M: Do you have pets?

P: I have a very special little dog. His name is Latch. I called him Latch cause he followed me home one day and latched onto me and he never lets me out of his sight. He’s my only other friend in the whole world, besides Daryl. Latch is funny and silly and he barks at the wall and chases Sally, our cat. She doesn’t like him, but he likes her, which is why he chases her all the time. I tried to tell her but she just hisses at him and if he gets too close she scratches his nose and then he yelps.

M: Are you scared of the dark?

P: No, not really. Well, maybe a little. I don’t like dark places, like when me and my brothers went down to the caves and we got stuck half way along and then my younger brother screamed because he thought he saw a hand sticking up from the bottom. It turned out to be just some roots or something. It was so funny.

M: Do you dream a lot? Do you daydream?

P: I dream all the time. Sometimes I dream I am a little bird stuck in a small cage and suddenly the door is open and I am free. Only, I don’t want to leave. Sometimes I dream I am flying like superman. Sometimes I have bad dreams that the world is ending and everything is exploding around me and I don’t know where my family is or anything. I can’t even find Latch and that worries me a lot. Most of the time I like to dream, but I don’t want the world to end. My teacher told my Mum and Dad I daydream. But I don’t know about that, cause I rarely sleep during the day so how can I dream?

M: Who do you look like, your mom or dad?

P: I look like my Dad. But I sound like my Mum. One day I will look and sound like my dad, like Peter does. He’s big and tall and he has muscles and he sounds grumpy all the time, just like Dad.

M: Who is your favorite artist?

P: I like ABBA. I love the blonde singer best. She’s beautiful and pretty like Miss Simons. Sometimes I go over to next doors and me and Sandy pretend we are in ABBA and we sing all their songs with microphones we made by ourselves.

M: What is the best book that you’ve ever read?

P: My very favorite book is the Loaded Dog. It’s really funny how the dog runs around the mines with dynamite in its mouth and doesn’t know the fuse is lit and all the men go running in all directions. The dog is black like Latch and the Policeman chasing him reminds me of Daryl cause he trips over everything all the time when he chases the dog. It’s so funny. The dog doesn’t blow up though, but the buildings do.

M: Do you think you’ll ever get married?

P: My brothers don’t think I will. They tease me all the time and say mean things like, “You’re too ugly to get married”. I would like to marry Sandy, but she’s a little bit older than me by thirteen months. She’s pretty and me and her play together sometimes. I think she would like the blonde singer from ABBA to be her bridesmaid and I think I would like my youngest brother to be my best man when he is old enough. He’s only four now though.

M: What do you want to be when you grow up?

P: I want to be a writer and write funny stories about little dogs doing silly things and getting into trouble. I like writing stories and Miss Simons, who is also my English teacher, thinks my stories are really good.

M: Thanks for sharing with me Paul. I hope we can be friends for a long time!

P: Thanks. If we are friends, then I can have three friends instead of 2, Lucky, Daryl and now you. That’s more friends than I have ever had in all my life. I like you cause you remind me of my teacher Miss Simons.

This is Paul Day nowadays, in his own words: 

"My wife Jennifer and I have been married for 25 years (last January) and are still very much in love. We have 2 children, both now adults. Our son, Josh, now lives away from home, but our daughter, Beck, is still at home and wants to be a writer also.

Right now I have 13 books published on Amazon (more if you count the print versions). I mainly write Children’s Books and YA Fiction. I am a Qualified Teacher and have worked in Public High Schools for the past eleven years. Before that I was a Motor Mechanic with 13 years experience. I studied at University for 6 years in between careers.

We live on a property out in the country with our 2 horses, one dog (Soxy), one cat (Toby) and 2 birds (Cocky and Teal)"

When I was eight I used to daydream, I played pretend and I loved to write. I still remember my 8^th birthday present and the feeling of
joy it gave me. What was it? A journal, covered in
beige leather, with a writing pad of white satin pages and a black fountain pen that attached to the inside of my elegant and beaming new friend. And this is me, at that age, smiling at the world that I knew…oh, yes, I knew, someday would me mine!
Mariana Llanos

 

REVIEW: Mailbox Kitten by Mammy Oaklee

Mailbox Kitten is a charming and nostalgic story that transports the reader to the Heart of the Bottoms Up 2/3 Acre to follow the adventures of Mammy and Pappy when they move into their new home in the country.  A special delivery in their mailbox will bring not only joy and excitement but also will make them face loss, grieve and eventually, hope.

 

I enjoyed reading this short story, told in a very evocative prose. The style is contagious and took me back to my own childhood memories: my house in the suburbs, the chickens we raised in our big yard, the cats that wandered around, my beloved dogs and the sadness and pain we had to go through every time one of them departed.  And that’s the special quality of this book: It can help a child cope with the death of a dear pet. But it is not somber or sad in anyway, on the contrary, it ends with hope, with laughter and joy. The illustrations are nicely done and convey the spirit of the story. They can help a wandering little mind to stay focused and understand the action in the story.

I have a feeling that author Mammy Oaklee has more sweet stories under her sleeve and that she’ll entertain us with her memories for years to come.

Mariana Llanos

 

About the author: Mammy Oaklee is a mom, a grandma and a city chick who always longed to be in the country.

 

*A free PDF version of the book was given to me in exchange for my honest opinion

IWrite is associated with the Amazon Affiliate Program